planning – Page 2 – Planning Edinburgh

RTPI Scotland Planning Awards for Excellence

Some (5) of the planning team standing and smiling holding the three awards. — Some of the planning team with the awards

We’re thrilled to announce that last week we secured the title of Scottish Planning Authority of the Year at this year’s Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Scotland Awards for Planning Excellence.

This fantastic accolade highlights the exceptional efforts of everyone in the service and celebrates their commitment to enhancing our community and making Edinburgh a wonderful place to live.

Additionally, Rowanbank Gardens, a housing development in Corstorphine, received a commendation in the Best Project category. It’s brilliant to see this project recognised for its quality and positive impact on the community, reinforcing our mission to create inclusive and vibrant neighbourhoods.

The crowning achievement was when the Edinburgh Futures Institute was named the overall winner. This remarkable project, which saw the transformation of the former Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh at Quartermile, demonstrates the qualities of good planning and working in partnership. It’s not just about the buildings; it’s about how we design spaces that uplift and engage our community.

These awards remind us that skilled planners and all those involved in the planning process are key to delivering these successful projects, and their hard work genuinely makes a difference in our daily lives.

As we look forward to the national RTPI awards in London later this year, we couldn’t be prouder of what the team has achieved.

In addition to these exciting achievements, we’re also celebrating our Building Standards team, who recently won the Local Authority Building Standards Scotland Awards for Customer Focus. This recognition underscores our ongoing commitment to excellence at the City of Edinburgh Council.

Changes to Planning Fees – 9 June 2025

Aerial View west across the Georgian splendour of Edinburgh New Town, with the line of Princes Street (left of centre), George Street (centre) and Queen Street (right) running parallel.

This week, Planning fees increased nationally. To reflect these changes, we have updated our Fees Charter.

All planning applications received from 9 June 2025 onwards will be charged the new fees.

Fees are also being introducing for local reviews and appeals against planning decisions. All local reviews and DPEA appeals received from 9 June 2025 onwards will be subject to a fee.

Planning fees are set by the Scottish Government. The relevant legislation is The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2024 which came in to effect 12 December 2024 and The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 which came in to effect 9 June 2025.

These Regulations amend the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications) (Scotland) Regulations 2022.

Local Review fees are also set by The Scottish Government. The relevant legislation is The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Local Reviews) (Scotland) Regulations 2025.

An application for a local review is not valid until the full required fee has been paid. Appellants must ensure the application for review AND the correct fee is submitted WITHIN three months from the planning application Decision Notice, otherwise the appellant will forfeit their right to appeal. Appellants are advised to submit their application for local review well within the three month time period to allow for checking of the validity of their review, including the fee.

Further guidance is available in Scottish Government Planning Circulars 2/2025 and 3/2025.

Please refer to planning validation guidelines for information about what to include as part of your submission.

We’re Hiring!

We have an exciting opportunity to work with us as a Technician in the Development Planning team.

We are looking for someone who has cartographic, design and GIS skills to update and create maps. You would be a key member of the team working on our next local development plan (City Plan 2040) which will be more visual and map based.

Edinburgh is Scotland’s busiest planning authority, handling over 3,000 applications a year in a city with internationally valued built and natural heritage. We have ambitious plans to realise Edinburgh’s vision of a fair, welcoming, pioneering and thriving city.

So, if you’re looking for an opportunity to get involved in a range of planning projects and processes, develop your knowledge and skills, and of course, work with a great bunch of people, then you can apply via myjobscotland.

The closing date is 10 June 2025.

In this short video some of the team share what it’s like to work here:

International Day for Biodiversity May 22nd 2025

This is a very special time to welcome International Biodiversity Day 2025, as Edinburgh celebrates a very important biodiversity anniversary this year. There is a long history of partnership working for biodiversity in the city and this year marks 25 years of the Edinburgh Biodiversity Partnership.

May is a great month to celebrate biodiversity and enjoy spending time in nature, and Edinburgh has some very special places to see nature – all year round!

We are really fortunate to have some amazing wildlife across our city, and this includes fantastic species like otters who have returned to our rivers and burns in recent years.

This month sees the return of Swifts, a bird which comes here just to breed and relies entirely on buildings for nesting sites. However, the nature crisis is well documented and there continue to be declines across all species groups globally and in Scotland. This is due to habitat loss, poor habitat management, pollution, invasive species and disease. Extreme weather caused by our changing climate can also have a negative impact through droughts and flooding. Climate change also makes some of the other threats worse, such as the spread of pests and diseases.

Tackling these challenges and supporting the recovery of nature requires a step change in land use planning and embedding positive effects for biodiversity into new developments.

Integrating nature at the design stage and creating nature positive places is good for health and wellbeing as well as biodiversity. It also supports resilience in the built environment to the impacts of climate change from overheating and extreme rainfall.

Nature rich places in the built environment provides urban cooling and slow down water flows. Our new biodiversity policies in City Plan 2030 are supported by Scottish Government guidance and Nature Scot’s Developing with Nature Guidance, as well as the updated draft Edinburgh Design Guidance.

We want your views on our draft Planning Design Guidance – Consultation closing soon

We are currently updating some of our planning guidance documents and would like to hear your views on the new draft versions.

The online consultation closes next week on 3 April 2025.

Your views will help us finalise the updates to these guidance documents:

Edinburgh Design Guidance – Guidance for design and placemaking in new developments. This is to make sure we have places that work well and create good places to live. (Photo courtesy of 7N Architects, © Leo Paredes Photography).
Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas – Guidance to support works to a listed building or within a conservation area. This is to make sure we look after our historic buildings and places.
Guidance for Householders – Guidance for development undertaken by individual householders. This includes work to existing houses and gardens.

You can view the draft-for-consultation documents here:

Edinburgh Design Guidance

Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas Guidance

Guidance for Householders

You can comment on any or all of them online here.

In response to the National Planning Framework 4, City Plan 2030 and the City Mobility Plan, we have reviewed the guidance documents to make sure they align with the aims and outcomes of the plans.

We have also updated the draft guidance to respond to the climate and nature emergencies. This includes:

Minimising energy used in the construction, maintenance and use of buildings.
Adapting to the changing climate, including sustainable drainage.
Supporting biodiversity and good green space.
Enabling sustainable transport.

Our advice on how we make spaces safer for everyone has also been updated.

All three consultations are open until 3 April 2025.